Smyrna Academy of Excellence Is Moving Forward

Since January 2012, I have been volunteering for The Smyrna Academy of Excellence because I believe in their mission to bring better school choices to the South Cobb area. 

As many of you have heard, the Georgia Charter Schools Division will recommend that SAE not be approved as a State Special Charter School.  

While this news is disappointing, The Smyrna Academy of Excellence will move forward and open as an affordable private school for the 2013-2014 school year.  

We hope you will join us Sunday, Sept 16th at 5pm at Taylor-Brawner Park to meet with school officials, ask questions and learn more about what this means for our community. 

I am sharing a piece written by on of our volunteers that beautifully sums up our journey and where we will go from here. We are going to be the most exceptionally SAFE, INNOVATIVE, and RIGOROUS school in Georgia. 

By Jill Rowland Meiser

For nearly two years, a determined group of parents, educators, community leaders have worked to plan Smyrna Academy of Excellence as a charter school within the South Cobb region. Our passion has been driven by the undeniable need for additional school options within our area, and a more innovative and personalized approach to education.

The hardest part about trying to create an innovative school within the confines of a public school system is that the people who would approve our charter have such a hard time breaking out of “this is the way it’s done” and they really struggle to imagine along with us that there is a better way.

We have recently learned that the Georgia Charter Schools Division will recommend that SAE not be approved as a State Special Charter School. Though this news is very disheartening to SAE officials and volunteers, our purpose and vision remains unchanged, and our commitment to bringing superior education choices to the South Cobb area is unwavering.

The reality is, SAE doesn’t fit either mold that we tried through the public school route. And that’s a very positive thing for our community. We are breaking the molds and creating something truly unique, a school that will treat each child as an individual, and we will foster an environment where each child will be individually challenged to reach for their highest potential.

Smyrna Academy of Excellence will open for the 2013-14 school year and will be an affordable private school. Details including the school’s tuition, calendar, and location are currently being finalized. Our most important aspects, such as teaching a STEM curriculum, Project Based learning and low student-teacher ratios continue to be our priority. We thank you for the overwhelming community support throughout this journey and ask you to continue along this path with us. Throughout every aspect of our school, we will bring the innovation and efficiencies necessary to make this an affordable private school for our community members. Stay closely tuned in coming weeks as additional details become available!

Be among the first to register your child and pay the application fee for the 2013/2014 school year at our 5pm meeting this Sunday and you will be entered to win 4 tickets to see the Atlanta Falcons play the Carolina Panthers on Sept 30th at 1pm. This prize package is worth $650 and includes a Red International Deck parking pass!